EMPIRE BUILT ON SAND / Key Projects Affected

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, July 9, 2006

Pacific Cement founder Ricardo Ramirez has been accused of grand theft and fraud only in connection with concrete poured at the Golden Gate Bridge and a Burlingame wastewater treatment plant. But substandard, recycled concrete from the company could be in several other projects where Pacific Cement worked in 2004 and 2005, public officials and former drivers for the company say.

SAN FRANCISCO FREEWAYS

Potential problems: Rebuilding of the western approach to the Bay Bridge, Fourth Street off-ramp from Interstate 80, Central Freeway.

What is known: Caltrans tests have confirmed that Pacific Cement poured recycled concrete into the rebuilding of the Bay Bridge western approach, a $429 million project that is supposed to be finished by 2009. Two samples taken during pours on the project that were allowed to harden and were later tested showed they consisted of 45 percent recycled concrete, and included bits of brick.

Next steps: Caltrans officials say the concrete generally met strength standards. But they say the greater concern is whether the material will have to be treated with an expensive sealant to prevent water infiltration. Recycled concrete is more porous than standard concrete, and if water makes its way in, it can shorten the concrete's lifespan.

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Tony Anziano, head of the toll bridge program for Caltrans, said the agency doesn't know yet how much of the western approach will need to be treated or how much it will cost.

At the Fourth Street off-ramp and at the Central Freeway, Caltrans says the concrete met strength specifications when it was poured. But it concedes that no tests have been done to see whether the concrete was recycled and that the structures may still need treatment to prevent water damage.

Such testing, known as core sampling, is expensive and risky.

"You are drilling a hole into a complete structure," Anziano said. "You don't want to be drilling holes into your concrete that are probably going to reach some rebar -- you can patch that hole, but you don't patch the rebar.

"It's not a large risk issue, but it's generally not a good idea to go punching holes through your new structure."

GOLDEN GATE PARK

Potential problem: Pacific Cement supplied concrete to the new three-story, 800-space underground parking garage outside the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in Golden Gate Park. Robert San Felipe, a former driver for the company, said in an interview that he had hauled many recycled loads there.

"It was a regular thing," he said. "Not with every load I brought out, but it was a regular thing."

What is known: Richard Young, the head of the project, told prosecutors that on one day, about 10 to 15 truckloads of concrete that Pacific delivered were rejected as substandard.

Tests on buckets drawn from other loads that went into the garage showed several failed to meet initial strength specifications, Young said. But, he told prosecutors, the concrete later "came up to strength."

Next steps: Prosecutors say Young told them he did not intend to conduct core sampling of the garage to determine whether any of the concrete was recycled.

Young did not return repeated calls seeking comment. But in an e-mail to The Chronicle, he said recycled concrete would never have been allowed in the project.

"To date, we have not seen any evidence that any recycled concrete has been used in the garage construction," Young said. "We are confident that the parking structures have been constructed properly and safely."

MUNICIPAL RAILWAY

Potential problem: Several Pacific Cement workers said in interviews and statements to prosecutors that they had delivered recycled concrete to the Muni's Third Street light-rail line, a $600 million-plus project to extend service through Bayview-Hunters Point that is scheduled to be completed this summer.

What is known: At least three tests done by the city Department of Public Works show that Pacific provided defective concrete to the project, although it is not clear whether the material was recycled. The samples were taken from poured loads and were sent to a lab for analysis. Those three were among a total of 25 Pacific Cement samples from various projects that failed city tests in 2004 and another 17 samples that failed in 2005.

Next steps: Prosecutors say Muni has done no core sampling since the start of the Pacific Cement investigation last year to determine whether any recycled concrete made it into the project. Muni spokeswoman Maggie Lynch declined to comment "until all the facts are in and all the investigations are complete."